A dictionary of Seattle real estate descriptions

Ever wonder what an ad means by terms like “Old World Charm” in an ad for that $400,000 fixer house in Seattle? One of our blog readers has some hilarious answers.

A reader registered as “Crash Davis” posits the real meaning of that term (“an old and ugly house”), and others like “low-maintenance lot” (“no yard; the kids will have to play in the street”) in a wonderfully funny response to one of P-I Real Estate Reporter Aubrey Cohen’s blog posts asking readers to compare two similarly priced houses in the area. Read Crash Davis’ “translator” here. It’s great for anyone who’s every tried to buy or sell a house.

Here are just a couple more examples:

* Near transportation – Amtrak train goes through the backyard, every 15 minutes, day and night
* Pet friendly neighborhood – organic matter constantly deposited in the front lawn
* Neighborhood watch – your next door neighbor has binoculars trained on your house
* Just available – previous owner just died on the premises, hope you don’t believe in ghosts